Welcome to my first blog - an account of personal observations and reflections on an array of subjects of interest, ranging from books, drama, films, Chinese opera, performing arts, culture, history, travelling and the latest developments in this Asia's world city and the global village at large.

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Thursday, 10 September 2009

A Threat to Stability (Part 2)

If the repressive DNA is the fundamental threat to stability, arrogance and complacence derived from one's power and authority is the root cause of stupidity.

The latest classic example can be found in what the information office spokeswoman of Xinjiang delivered on Tuesday (8 September).

It's just unbelievable. She simply reminds me of what State Council spokesperson Yuan Mu said 20 years ago about the bloodshed at Tiananmen Square in Beijing.

While it is a common trick to blame the others when someone finds himself/herself under attack, governments and organisations are rare beneficiaries of this privilege of evasion. Few could escape the limelight. And if they do, it requires state-of-the-art communication skills and, more importantly, a seamless manipulation of the current state of affairs. Apparently this is a form of art to the finest delicacy that few can master.

At this point of time when information flow has been made so easy and effortless, and arguments and perspectives can be invalidated every minute with the emergence of new information, I simply cannot understand why any authority would point its fingers at someone else without providing solid evidence. Worse still, they told lies so casually and easily as if the accused would be intimidated to speak up and counteract. In which period of history do the local government leaders think they are living? Who they think they are? Do they still believe they are in such an authoritative position that everything they say, right or wrong, would be taken as truth unconditionally?

When I watched television news on Tuesday night I found the spokeswoman extremely nervous and uneasy. To me, her facial expression and body language suggested that she personally does not agree with what she was asked to articulate. I really wonder how much time she had prepared for her presentation that was designed to be a blunder.

To remedy the situation, the Xinjiang authorities have no choice but to apologise and present the full picture of what happened. Those who abused their power must be punished. But this best scenario seems very unlikely. Otherwise the Xinjiang authorities would not have made such a disastrous mistake one after another.

What intrigues me most is the reaction of Beijing. The Beijing leaders have remained silent over the past few days, although they did try to address people's resentment by replacing a few party and government chiefs. However, the reluctance to remove Wang Lequan, reportedly a protégé of General Secretary Hu Jintao, can be devastating to Beijing as well, especially in the countdown to the 60th anniversary of the People's Republic.